I saw the road then, up ahead, and I forced myself forward. Each step was agonizing, each breath like a scalding dagger to the stomach. I stepped down into the ditch and out of the woods, and then back up the embankment and toward the road. I must look like a nightmare; who would ever stop for me?
To my surprise, someone did. The dark truck pulled to a stop next to me, and the man in the driver’s seat leaned over as he rolled the window down, taking in my appearance. He was old, haggard, worn. The truck smelled of cigarettes and chewing tobacco.
“Do you need some help?” he asked. Question of the century. I obviously had a genius on my hands.
“Yes. Please.”
He reached over further, pushing the door open. He wasn’t afraid of me. Even bloody and covered in dirt, I didn’t appear to be a threat. It must be why I went down so easily. But I felt like I’d been reborn, and I wouldn’t be so easy to take down the next time.
I was coming for what was mine. I would take my son back. Go home to my wife. I would fix this somehow. I had to.
I climbed into the truck, the pain of each movement unrelenting. It hurt. It all just…hurt.
He pulled out a cell phone. “Do you want me to call an ambulance? The police?” He swallowed as he stared at me, apparently more afraid now.
“Thank you, but I’ll be okay. Can you just take me home?” I asked. My voice was gravelly and unfamiliar. How long had it been since I used it? How long had it been since she buried me? Since she thought she killed me?
I would be okay, just as soon as I ended this once and for all. I couldn’t do that if the police were involved. I might have to kill her, and I had to accept that.
He nodded, his hands shaking as he moved to put the car into drive. “What happened to you?”
I didn’t answer him because I didn’t know. Not really. I had no idea what happened to get me to this place. I stared out the window, my body roaring with agony, and all I could think of was how I let myself get here. How I let her ruin my life.
When we reached the street, I told him to drop me off a few houses away from hers. I didn’t want to give her any warning I was coming. It was suspicious, but, truth be told, I think he was glad to be rid of me. He stopped and wished me well, and I climbed from the car slowly.
I froze when I saw her car. Palmer.
Had she managed to find him? Managed to figure it out?
If Kat hurt either of them, I’d never forgive myself.
I pushed forward, running as fast as my leg would carry me, thick blood dripping down my thigh. When I reached the house, I heard screaming. Palmer’s. Kat’s. Gray was crying. I shoved open the back door and tore open a drawer, grabbing the biggest knife I could find and hurrying up the stairs.
If they weren’t making so much noise, they’d know I was coming. My footsteps were anything but quiet. Every time I stepped on my right side, I fell into the wall.
I shoved open the door and took in the scene. Palmer was on the floor, her stomach stained with blood. A dark-haired Kat stood above her, ready to attack. I didn’t think twice, launching forward with the knife. It connected with her lower back, near her kidneys, and I pushed it through with force. She quivered, freezing, and I jerked it back out. It took much more force to get out than it had going in.
I sucked in a breath, still unable to process what I’d done. Kat sighed, mumbled something, then fell.
I stared down at Palmer, who looked pale and sickly. Did she hate me? Should she?
I felt too faint to know the answer. I looked back at Kat’s body. A body, a woman, I’d loved with all my heart.
What did you do?
What did he do to you?
As long as I lived, I’d never forgive the driver who ran the red light and brought us to that moment.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Palmer
I stared up at Ben as he pressed his hands into my shoulder. Gray screamed from his crib behind me, and my eyes watered with pain, joy, and confusion.
“Don’t move.” He pulled his shirt off, wrapping it around my shoulder to staunch the bleeding.
“I…I don’t understand.” I panted. “I thought you…why did you…”
“Shhh,” he whispered, wiping the hair that stuck to my forehead out of my eyes. “It’s okay. I’ll explain everything to you soon. I’ll tell you everything.”
I looked to where Kat was slumped on the floor. “Is she…”
He gave a stiff nod. “I couldn’t chance it again. I’m sorry, Palmer. I’m so sorry.”
“Check Gray. Is he okay?” I asked, wincing.
He didn’t have to be told twice, standing up slowly and lifting our son from the crib. He bent down next to me again with Gray in his arms. “Do you have your phone? I need to call an ambulance.”
I nodded. “My back pocket.”
As he reached for it, we heard the downstairs doors open and a parade of footsteps headed our way. Kessler was one of the first in the door, her gun drawn. She took in the scene, pointing the gun at Ben.
“Palmer, you okay?” she asked.
“It’s okay,” I assured her. “Ben saved me. He saved Gray.”
She looked uneasy and kicked the knife even further away from him, shouting down the hall. “We need a medic up here. Now.” She bent down next to me, examining my shoulder, but keeping a close eye on Ben. “Are you okay?”
“I’m okay… She stabbed my shoulder. Check Gray. Take care of Gray.” She held out her arms for my son, and as the EMTs arrived, she handed him off. They reappeared a few seconds later for me, putting me on a stretcher and carrying me down the hall.
“How did you get here?” I called out to Kessler before I was too far down the hall. “How did you know where we were?”
“Your friend Ty called me. He was worried about you and said you’d gone missing,” she said. “We tracked your phone, saw your car, and followed the trail of blood.” She pointed to the ground where there was indeed a thick trail of blood left behind by Ben.
I winced, a searing pain shooting through my shoulder. “Is Gray okay?” I asked the EMT, a young, blonde woman with incredibly white teeth. “My baby? Is he okay?”
“He looks a little hot. A little hungry. But they’re giving him a thorough exam now.”
Ben began to follow us, but Kessler stopped him, her face stern. I wasn’t sure what to think. He’d lied to me about so much, things I didn’t even know about, things I may never. But he also saved me. He saved Gray. I couldn’t discount that.
I laid my head back on the stretcher, feeling dizzy as we headed out the door. I’d never been so thankful for fresh air in my life.
As we reached the stretcher and they removed the makeshift bandage Ben had made with his shirt, my head fell back, too heavy to lift it any longer. Then, whether from blood loss or exhaustion, sleep found me, and I welcomed it like an old friend.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Palmer
I woke up in the hospital with Ben by my side. He had Gray in his arms. I tensed at the sight, though his smile grew wide when he met my eyes.
“You’re awake.”
“What’s going on?” I asked, still foggy from all that had happened.
“You’re going to be fine. You lost a lot of blood. Your shoulder wasn’t terrible, but you’d reopened your incision and bled quite a bit internally because of it. They said you took a pretty bad blow to your stomach.”
I scoffed, adjusting myself the best that I could. “A few, actually. Can I hold him?” I held my arms out, happiness swelling inside me.
“Yeah, of course.” He placed him in my arms.
I looked down at my son, his lips curling into a happy, contented smile. “Did they check him out?”
“He’s perfectly healthy,” Ben assured me. “He was well fed and taken care of. His diapers had been changed and everything.”
“Are…you okay?” I asked, remembering his wounds.
“I’m fine, just a few stitches and some antibiotics,” he
said, gesturing toward his head and leg. “I’ll be on crutches for a while until the muscles heal.”
I nodded, suddenly in pain again, though it felt more emotional than physical. “Were you cheating on me…with her?”
His eyes widened, and he reached for my hand. “No, Palmer. No. I promised you I’d never cheat on you, and I meant it.”
“Then who was she?” I asked, holding Gray closer as tears formed in my eyes.
“We don’t have to do this now…”
“Yes, yes, we do.”
“She was my wife.”
“Before me?”
“Yes.”
“And what did she want with my son?”
“Kat wasn’t…she wasn’t well. We lost a baby in a really traumatic way. She was thirty-six weeks along when it happened. We already knew we were having a boy. We’d already picked out a name. She…she never really recovered.”
I bit down on my tongue. “That’s why you divorced?”
“Mostly, yes. We grew apart. I don’t…I don’t really know how couples survive losses like that. I wished we could’ve, but we just couldn’t seem to make it work.”
“And you…what? You stayed in touch?”
“No,” he said quickly. “No. I didn’t talk to her at all until after we announced our pregnancy. She reached out to me, and I felt I owed her kindness at the very least. When you experience something like that with someone, even when it pulls you apart, it also bonds you.”
“So, then, why did she take Gray?”
“She believed Gray was her child, I think. She wanted so badly to have a baby to replace the one we lost, but we could never have afforded an adoption, even during our best times.” He paused. “I tried so hard to save him, Palmer. I know it doesn’t make what I did okay, but I never thought she was dangerous. She wanted to meet him. To see my child. I didn’t think there was any harm, but I was wrong. I’d done so much wrong by her, I just wanted to do the right thing, and I nearly lost everything I cared about because of it.”
“Were you taking a boat ride together? Why did you rent a boat?”
“I didn’t. From what the police have said, and what I can remember, she had some random guys from the marina rent it in my name. She took my wallet, my ID, and my cap to make it happen. The police tracked them down and they said she gave them one hundred dollars to get in the boat and abandon it in the ocean. They hopped on a friend's boat and let it drift to shore.”
“She wanted me to believe you were dead,” I said softly.
He nodded.
“What about the flight?”
He chewed his lip, shaking his head. “Officer Kessler told me she booked a flight. They still think it was a diversion to get you to believe I’d left you, if you didn’t believe that I was dead. I honestly don’t know.” He scratched his forehead. “I wish I could’ve understood her better.”
“Did you…kill her? Is she gone?”
He nodded slowly. “I couldn’t let her hurt you.”
I sighed. “I don’t know if I can forgive you, Ben. This is…I could’ve lost Gray forever.”
His eyes fell to the floor. “I know. Believe me I do. I would’ve never forgiven myself. I still haven’t—”
I touched his hand, stopping him. “But thank you. For saving me.”
He smiled, and it was melancholy and pensive, the same as mine. It was what I could offer him at the time. Nothing more, nothing less. We were in this together, but it didn’t mean we’d stay together. It didn’t mean I forgave him or that I trusted him anymore. He’d hurt me in so many ways, and I wasn’t sure I’d ever be ready to let him back into my life.
I’d learn. I’d figure it out.
But what I was learning more than anything was that letting anyone close to you was dangerous.
I stared down at my son, brushing my finger across his forehead. Maybe it’ll just be me and you against the world, little guy.
Maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Palmer
TWO YEARS LATER
“Grant Anderson called,” Howie told me. “He wants to see those quarterly reports.”
I shook my head, staring out across our brand new, expansive and incredibly bare office. It was a big upgrade on the cramped building we’d been in the first year.
“Tell Mr. Anderson that I said he’s a silent partner for a reason,” I told him, only half-joking. “He’ll get the reports when we send them.”
I stood as Dannika entered the building, her arms spread wide, mouth agape. “Girl, have you seen who’s outside?”
“Who?” I asked.
“Oh, no. We’re gonna need to barricade the doors and windows. It’s Nate!” She sat her bags down, watching me.
My jaw dropped with shock. “Are you serious? What’s he doing here?”
“I don’t know. I hurried my happy ass inside when I saw him. What do you want Howie to do?” she asked, grabbing a bag of chips from her purse and popping one in her mouth.
Howie scowled. “Me? I’m not security!”
I giggled. “Okay, calm down. I’m fine, guys. Honestly. If there’s one thing in this world I’m no longer concerned with, it’s Nate Creswell.” I walked across the room, my heels clicking on the floor.
Two months after the Kat ordeal, Dannika and I had finally opened up our firm, bringing Howie along with us. It was the happiest I’d been in a long time. Gray was happy and healthy, and his doctors didn’t believe he’d be affected in the slightest by all he’d gone through. He was too young and blissfully unaware.
Ben and I were working through our issues with monthly counseling. We’d started dating again, but he’d moved out and gotten his own place. We shared custody of Gray, but I had no intentions of filing for divorce. Despite all we’d gone through, I wanted to work on us. I believed Ben cared for me. I knew he cared for Gray. I just wanted to give myself time to process.
Ty’s phone call had saved my life. The doctors said if the EMTs hadn’t arrived when they did, I might not have made it. I’d never be able to thank him enough for that.
The house Ben and Kat owned finally sold, and Ben paid me back in full for the money he’d borrowed, even though most of it was his own, apologizing profusely for letting it get so out of hand.
I’d gone through something so terrible, something I wouldn’t wish on anyone, but I’d grown stronger because of it. I had stronger friendships, a stronger bond with my son. I’d faced my fears and finally taken the leap with my business.
After going through something like I did, nothing could really seem so scary in comparison.
I pushed open the door to our building, narrowing my gaze at Nate. Two years ago, I would’ve cried or walked away. I never would’ve faced him. Now, I was a new woman.
“What are you doing here?”
His chest rose and fell with a heavy breath. “I, um, hi, first of all.” He stepped closer, and I felt my stomach turn a flip. He’d always been able to do that to me. “I heard you opened up your firm. Congratulations.”
“How’d you hear?”
“I’ve been…keeping tabs on you, Palm.” He sighed, rubbing a hand across his chin.
“What are you doing here, Nate?” I pressed.
He frowned. “There’s no easy way to say this, but you deserve to hear it. I’m sorry—”
I pursed my lips, holding up a hand. “Oh, you don’t have to—”
“No, I do. I really do. I’m sorry for hurting you and for lying to you and for…for all the other shit I did. You didn’t deserve any of it.”
“I didn’t,” I agreed.
“And I know you’ll never forgive me, but for what it’s worth. I’ve grown up a lot. I grew up a lot from losing you. I wanted to come back so many times and beg you to forgive me, but I don’t deserve your forgiveness.”
“Well, I appreciate it, nonetheless.”
“But you don’t forgive me…”
“Forgiveness is earned, Nate. You’
ve never done anything to earn it.” Ben had. Ben was working every day for it. Doing whatever I demanded.
“Would you be willing to let me try?” He rubbed the back of his neck, a crooked grin on his lips.
Ben and I were separated and working on our issues. It wouldn’t be cheating, but I still wasn’t sure it was what I wanted.
I swallowed. “What are you proposing?”
“Just one dinner? Even if it’s just to catch up…as friends.”
“We can go out for brunch tomorrow. It’s not a date. I get my son back in the afternoon, and I won’t see you while I’m with him. My time spent with him is all his.”
He nodded. “Brunch tomorrow is perfect. Thank you. You…look beautiful, by the way.”
I flushed red. “Thank you. Now…quit stalking my office building. My employees were ready to barricade the door.”
He laughed, giving me a wink as he took a step back. “Whatever you say, boss. See you tomorrow at ten?”
“Tomorrow at nine,” I corrected, just to have the upper hand. I was learning that was something I liked.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Ben
After my week with Gray, it was time for me to bring him back to Palmer. We alternated weeks with him and spent one day of the weekend together. It was slow and steady…we were in no rush. We were finding our happy medium, and I was gaining her trust back one step at a time. I let her lead the way.
I’d learned from my mistakes and grown into a man I could be proud of, just as she had grown. I was so incredibly proud of all she’d accomplished in the past two years. I wouldn’t give up on her or on us. I loved her too much. I wouldn’t give up unless Palmer asked me to, and she hadn’t. I had gone to therapy monthly, taken her out on dates, taken Gray to Daddy and Me classes, gone back to work. Done whatever she asked to prove to her how much I wanted to change. How much I had changed.
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